Visual information apparatus

ABSTRACT

A visual information apparatus comprising a housing and a panel on which appear the insignia formed in the housing. A screen divided into squares is fitted over the panels and the insignia may be sighted on the screen.

United States Patent Hanewinkel 1451 Oct. 10,1972

[54] VISUAL INFORMATION APPARATUS Inventor: Lorenz Hanewinkel,Ferrariweg 17a,

Paderbom, Germany Filed: Nov. 7, 1969 Appl. No.: 870,537

Foreign Application Priority Data Aug. 17,1971 Germany ..P 18 06 573.1

US. Cl. ..40/125 E 1111. c1 .0091 1/00 Field of Search; ..40/125, 125 E,l, 28, 125 F [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,023,4714/1912 Hoffman ..40/l25 R 2,818,666 l/1958 Wilson ..40/l25 R 3,350,80511/1967 Jorgensen ..40/125 R Primary Examiner-Robert W. MichellAssistant Examiner-Wenceslao J. Contreras Attorney-Steinberg & Blake [57] ABSTRACT A visual information apparatus comprising a housing and apanel on which appear the insignia formed in the housing. A screendivided into squares is fitted over the panels and the insignia may besighted on the screen.

4 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures VISUAL INFORMATION APPARATUS The presentinvention relates to visual information apparatus.

In accordance with the invention, a device which provides indicia on onepanel thereof which may be provided with a screen cover divided intosquares through which the various indicia appearing on said panel can beviewed to better advantage.

The invention will be made apparent from the following description andthe accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the device without the screen;

FIG. 2 is the screen cover and FIG. 3 is the device with the screencover secured thereon.

Referring now to the drawings in detail the device includes a housing I,provided with a panel 2 divided into vertical sections 5. The indicia 6,appear on the panel 2. A rectangular cover 3, shown in FIG. 2, isdivided into squares 4 and is secured over the offset panel 2.

It will be noted from FIG. I that the indicia appearing on the panel 2is in the form of a series of dots all arranged along the vertical lineswhich divide the panel 2 into the vertical sections 5. In the particularexample illustrated the left series of dots in FIG. 1 indicate thenumber I while the right series of dots indicate the number 2. Actuallythe series of dots which form the number 1 take the form of an outer andinner series of dots both of which form the numeral 1 with a spacebetween the outer and inner series conforming to the width of eachvertical section 5. The same is true of the number 2 which is formed byan outer and inner series of dots all arranged along the vertical lineswhich divide the panel into the vertical sections 5.

When viewing the bare panel 2, as it appears in FIG. I, the fact thatthe series of dots form the numbers 1 and 2 is not immediately apparentbecause of the presence of the vertical lines dividing the panel 2 intothe vertical sections 5. However, when the panel is covered by the cover3 having the screen divided at its mesh into the squares 4 which aresmaller in their dimensions than the width of a section 5, the viewer isnot aware of the presence of the vertical lines which form the section 5and along which the dots are arranged. The screen 4 forms a backgroundand the viewer is not even aware of the meshes of the screen. All thatthe viewer sees are the dots 6 which are readily apparent through thescreen 4 so as to make the pattern along which the dots 6 are arrangedfar more readily apparent to the observer than when the panel 2 isuncovered, so that by way of the cover 3 it is possible for the observerto immediately appreciate what indicia are formed by the pattern ofdots. Thus it is possible to view the indicia through the screen tobetter advantage than without the screen cover. The effect of the screencover is to make the vertical lines disappear when the entire assemblyis observed so that the dots which form the indicia stand out veryclearly. It will be noted that where the dots are arranged alongvertical lines the distance between the dots on any one vertical line isequal to the distance between a pair of lines or in other words to thewidth of a vertical section 5.

The embodiment of the invention in which an exclusive privilege isclaimed is as follows:

1 A visual information apparatus comprising a panel having verticallines dividing the panel into vertical sec tions of uniform width, aplurality of dots arranged on said lines and forming indicia on saidpanel, and a screen cover covering said panel for rendering the indiciaformed by said dots more clearly apparent, said screen cover having amesh of open squares the dimensions of each of which are substantiallysmaller than the width of each vertical section of said panel.

2. The combination of claim 1 and wherein the dots are arrangedaccording to a predetermined pattern having outer and inner rows of dotsfor each indicium.

3. The combination of claim 2 and wherein the outer and inner rows ofdots are spaced from each other by a distance equal to the width of eachvertical section.

4. The combination of claim 3 and wherein the dots are arranged only onsaid vertical lines with rows of dots which extend along any one linebeing spaced apart from each other by a distance equal to the width ofeach vertical section.

1. A visual information apparatus comprising a panel having veRticallines dividing the panel into vertical sections of uniform width, aplurality of dots arranged on said lines and forming indicia on saidpanel, and a screen cover covering said panel for rendering the indiciaformed by said dots more clearly apparent, said screen cover having amesh of open squares the dimensions of each of which are substantiallysmaller than the width of each vertical section of said panel.
 2. Thecombination of claim 1 and wherein the dots are arranged according to apredetermined pattern having outer and inner rows of dots for eachindicium.
 3. The combination of claim 2 and wherein the outer and innerrows of dots are spaced from each other by a distance equal to the widthof each vertical section.
 4. The combination of claim 3 and wherein thedots are arranged only on said vertical lines with rows of dots whichextend along any one line being spaced apart from each other by adistance equal to the width of each vertical section.